Review the universal credit loophole that rewards polygamous households.

Rejected 21 signatures

What the petition asks

Bigamy and polygamy (having more than one legally married spouse) are illegal. A 2016 House of Commons library paper highlighted a loophole that will allow additional wives to claim a full single person’s allowance while the husband and his first wife still receive theirs. (1)

This could mean some polygamous households will receive more under universal credit than under the present benefit and tax credit system, the paper said. There are many hard working law abiding tax paying couples with one husband and one wife who are struggling to make ends meet and face tax credit cuts (2). This needs to be reviewed.
(1) https://www.express.co.uk/news/uk/637436/Migrants-more-one-wife-extra-benefits-reforms
2 https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-34572807

Why it was rejected

It was not clear what the petition asked the UK Government or Parliament to do.

We're not sure exactly what you'd like the Government or Parliament to do.

We're not sure what you would like to happen as a result of reviewing Universal Credit rules. You could start a new petition explaining clearly what you would like the Government or Parliament to do,

Timeline

25 May 2019	Petition opened for signatures
24 Jun 2019	Rejected by the Petitions Committee

Key facts

Signatures 21

Status Rejected

Rejected 24 Jun 2019

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